The Feel Good Drag
by KBelle1
Summary: Annie is in nursing school and has a loving boyfriend. On her first day, she meets the group, and more specifically, Jeff. A tale about Annie's journey through nursing school, making friends, and discovering herself. Annie/Jeff, AU, OOC
1. Chapter 1

Sitting at her orientation, surrounded by 98 other students, Annie couldn't help but feel down. Nursing school was supposed to be her new start, her way to make something of herself. But what did she do? She failed out her first time around, and was back at Greendale, retaking her class. She should have moved on to second semester, with all of her other classmates—well, the one's who passed, anyway. Instead, she was sitting at a round table in the cafeteria with 6 other people she didn't know, waiting for the orientation speech to begin.

Annie couldn't say her life was horrible. After high school and her pill addiction, she met an amazing guy named Jake. They had been together for 4 years now, and lived together in a small apartment with their dogs. He worked in a warehouse in the evenings, while she took classes during the day. People always said that she was lucky, and she definitely agreed with them. Her only complaint was that things felt stagnant, like nothing was moving forward. Annie, being a go getter, figured that by 22 she would be graduated, with a bachelor's degree, making a good living, and on the way to getting married to the man she loved. Everything happens for a reason though.

As the room filled up, she took stock of the people. A girl with her mother—she probably wouldn't last in the program very long, a lot of people her age, quite a few older people, and a larger number of men than she was expecting. She counted 19 total. Not bad. Greendale always liked to boast about the number of male nurses they taught.

Annie looked down at her sticker name tag and sighed, peeling the backing off and sticking it to her blue scrub top. Looking around the table, she smiled, taking a peek at everybody's name. Troy, Shirley, Abed, Pierce, Britta, and an empty chair. Looked like student number eight was running late.

"So, are you guys excited about class starting?" Annie asked, smiling at the group.

"Oh, why yes!" exclaimed the woman named Shirley. "I've always wanted to be a nurse."

Troy and Abed both murmured some non-committal gibberish about their excitement.

"I want to be a nurse, but I don't want to be bogged down by sexist ideas of what a nurse is supposed to be," Britta said, crossing her arms and leaning back in her chair.

Annie suppressed rolling her eyes, and went back to studying the people in the room. As she turned back to face her own table, she saw a tall man taking the free seat next to Britta. Actually, he was a tall, _handsome_ man. She looked at his name tag and saw his name was Jeffrey. He carried the biggest thermos of coffee she had ever seen, and he somehow managed to make the scrubs he wore look good.

"Hey there, I'm Jeff," he said, setting his things down on the table, "I didn't miss anything, did I?"

Britta shook her head, a small blush rising to her cheeks. Annie sighed. She thought anybody who dated a classmate was a fool, especially when you were going to be in a program together for 2 whole years. That was their mistake to make, though.

Just then, the head of the program walked in, and quiet fell over the room.

"Good morning everybody, my name is Dr. Thompson, and I oversee the nursing program here at Greendale Community College. Nursing is one of the most rewarding professions that can be pursued, and I have all the confidence in the world that you all will succeed. Now, a couple items to go over. First, every student must complete a drug screen within 7 days of today. Failure to do so will result in your forfeiture of your spot in the program. If there are any issues with this, please come see me after the meeting today. Next, your uniforms. As you walked in, we checked to make sure that everybody was dressed appropriately. You will wear this uniform on your assigned hospital days. Make sure that you get an ID made today, and make sure that if you had violations, they are corrected in the future. Good luck to all of you."

Everybody applauded as Dr. Thompson took her seat, and a middle aged bald man took the stage.

"Well hello! My name is Professor Pelton, and I'll be your main professor this semester! Who's in for a fabulous time?" he paused briefly, causing an awkward silence. "Now, let's get done with the boring stuff so we can get on with the fun!"

An hour of bad puns and boring text book talk later, the Pelton was finally done, allowing everyone to find out which lab groups they would be assigned to.

"Okay, so I was thinking that, if you all are up to it, we could maybe have a study group?" Annie asked, gauging the reaction of the people at the table.

"That would be good for me," Britta said, "Jeff, will you go?"

He looked up from his phone and glanced at the group. "Sure, sounds like we could use all the help we can get this semester."

"Troy and I are in," said Abed. "People say I'm weird and difficult to deal with, so as long as you guys are prepared."

"I would love to have a study group!" Shirley said excitedly, "I was really hoping to join a group."

"Just tell me when and where," Pierce said, causing Jeff to roll his eyes. Annie smirked.

"Okay, great! Well, just write your numbers down on this paper, and I'll text you so we can set up times!" Annie said, setting a piece of notebook paper in the middle of the table.

Annie looked down at the sticker on her shirt, noting that she was in lab group 2 pm, so she headed over to the group standing to the left of the stage. She saw Jeff as she walked up, and she shot him a quick smile.

"Ready for the tour of the campus?" she asked him, smiling.

"A tour? Really? Do they forget that we've already taken classes here?" he asked her, shaking his head, smirking a little.

"Yeah, they show us the library, the computer room, the classroom we'll be in, and stuff like that. It's just a way for them to keep us here a little longer."

"Great. How do you know what they're going to show us?" he asked her.

"Don't tell the others yet, but I'm actually a repeat. I failed last semester," she said, past the point of feeling embarrassed about it, "I figure that I can help some other students out with what to expect this semester. I just want to be the one to tell people."

"Got it," he said, smiling down at her slightly, "if it makes you feel any better, I don't think that's anything to be embarrassed about. At least you didn't give up."

"Thanks," she said, smiling, "you have no idea how much that means to me."

He didn't say anything to that, as the tour was about to begin. The upperclassman leading the tour showed them all of the important buildings and rooms on campus, and explained what they should expect that semester in a little more detail than Pelton had explained. Annie and Jeff stayed together the whole time, cracking jokes. They also picked a study room. Study room F to be exact.

When the tour ended, they went back to the cafeteria and sat back down at their original table. Annie picked up the sheet of paper with everybody's names and phone numbers, tucking it into her pocket.

As the rest of the students filed back into the cafeteria, the Professor Pelton took the stage again.

"It looks like that's all I've got for you today! Have a fabulous rest of your day, and I'll see you in a week for your first class!"

The group immediately got up, not needing to be told twice, and Annie began heading to the door.

"I'll text you guys this evening," she called over her shoulder as she slipped through the double doors leading to the parking lot.

Jake had driven her today since her car was in the shop, but she didn't see him there yet. "Damn," she muttered, taking out her phone to text him that she was done. She found a picnic table to sit down at while she waited.

"Waiting around all alone?" a voice said behind her.

Annie turned around and saw Jeff standing there, his hands in his pockets. "My boyfriend drove me today, and he's just running late picking me up."

Jeff nodded, looking out to the parking lot. "Want me to wait with you? I don't have anywhere to be."

"You don't have to. He should be more than ten minutes or so," Annie said, knowing, but not understanding the reason, that Jeff probably shouldn't be present when Jake picked her up.

"Alright, well, you have my number…" he trailed off, looking at her meaningfully.

She nodded, patting her pocket. "Have a good rest of your week, Jeff."

"You too, Annie."


	2. Chapter 2

The first day of class came both too quickly, and not quickly enough for Annie's liking. She hated not being busy, and with her work schedule so light, she had a lot of down time. However, she knew the stress that was coming her way.

After the orientation, she had sent a text to her new little group, setting up a study day and time. Tuesday's at 9:00 in the morning until whenever they got done. Everybody's hospital clinical times were either Thursday, Friday, or Saturday, so it worked out perfectly.

The first Monday of class, Annie got up to her alarm at 6:00 am. She sat on the edge of her bed, contemplating if this whole education thing was actually worth it, as was her ritual when she had to wake up super early.

She trudged into the bathroom and got in the shower, turning the water on as hot as she could stand it. By the time she was scrubbed and cleaned, she felt monumentally better, and was ready to start actually getting ready. She blow dried her hair, and for good measure straightened it as well. She also put on a good amount makeup, knowing that when she looked good, she felt more confident. Well, that and the fact they were taking a class picture that morning. She couldn't help but feel slightly dejected at the fact that this would be the _second_ class picture she was a part of.

When she was done in the bathroom, she went back to her bedroom to put her scrubs on. For the first day, they had to wear their ugly uniform scrubs—royal blue top and black pants. She tried to be as quiet as possible since Jake was still sound asleep in their bed. She smiled down at him and kissed his cheek before grabbing her ID badge and leaving the room, shutting the door quietly behind her.

Thinking about her new group, she pulled out her phone to send a quick text.

 _Don't forget to wear uniform scrubs today!_

She knew they probably didn't' _need_ the reminder, but if someone showed up in the wrong clothes, she wouldn't have to feel guilty about it.

* * *

When she got to class, she was happy to see she was nice and early. She loved getting there early enough on the first day to pick out the perfect seat. For her, it was near the outside aisle, three rows from the front. When she put her things down, she decided to head back outside and enjoy the fresh air while she could, since they would get minimal breaks during the 8-hour lecture.

"Fancy seeing you here," she heard a voice say behind her. She turned around, and saw Jeff standing there, giant thermos of coffee once again in hand.

"Imagine that," she said, smiling. "I was just getting some fresh air before we cooped up the classroom all day."

He nodded, motioning toward the bench. She scooted over so he could sit with her.

"So what's on the agenda for today?" he asked, whispering like they were sharing a conspiracy.

"Well, we take a group picture at about 10 or so when the sun finally gets bright enough. We'll go over basics like infection control and hand washing—things that are pretty common sense. And we'll go over the syllabus some more and clinical assignments, in case anybody has any questions."

"Sounds like a fun time," he said frowning.

"Ha! It's something. A lot of it is keeping us in the classroom so they can say we got a certain amount of hours. Speaking of hours, it's time to go in."

Jeff stood up and walked toward the door, holding it open for her. "Milady."

"Milord," she said, grinning.

He followed her down to her row and sat down next to her, pulling out his computer and cell phone. The rest of the group followed suit, with Troy and Abed sitting down in the row, along with Pierce, Shirley, Britta. When Annie saw Britta, she rolled her eyes.

"Hey, Jeff," Britta said, sitting down on the other side of him. She flipped her hair, and leaned back in the seat, twisting toward Jeff. "Your hair looks different," she said, tilting her head and smiling at him.

Annie outwardly scoffed at that point.

"Yeah, I got a haircut," he said. "Hey, Annie, will you plug my cord in?" He handed the cord to her when she nodded yes. He opened up his laptop and started opening up the PowerPoint for the lecture, obviously ending the conversation with Britta.

Annie didn't know why, but that made her pretty damn happy.

* * *

When it was time for lunch, Annie got up and started heading for the door.

"Are we going to have lunch together?" Shirley asked eagerly, clutching her purse to her chest.

"Uh, yeah, sure!" Annie said, looking to the rest of the group.

"I actually have lunch already in my car…" Jeff said, starting to move toward the door.

"What, are you too good to eat with us?" Troy asked, crossing his arms.

"Of course not. You know what, I'll just grab it, and then meet you guys in the cafeteria."

"Okay, we'll find a table!" Annie said, leading the group to the cafeteria. Luckily there was a large booth free, and they set their stuff down before getting in line to order their food.

"So what do you guys think of the course so far?" Annie asked after she ordered a chicken quesadilla.

"It seems pretty simple so far," Britta said, smiling condescendingly at Annie.

"Just don't get too comfortable! It gets difficult quick."

When they got back to the table, Jeff was there, phone out. Annie was noticing a trend with him.

"I feel like we should know everyone's story," Abed said suddenly, looking around the table. "It will help to make our characters more believable to the audience."

"Umm, okay," Annie said smiling kindly at her new friend. "I guess we can go around the table and introduce ourselves. Jeff do you want to start?"

He sighed and put his phone down. "I'm Jeff Winger, I'm 36, and I used to be a lawyer, until they found out my degree was less than reputable. Instead of going to an actual law school, I decided to be a nurse. I've always been interested in this stuff, so I figured what the hell. Why not?"

Everybody smiled at him, most of them a little surprised by what he had to say.

"I'm Pierce. I'm not telling anyone how old I am. I'm the CEO of the Hawthorne Wipes, and I thought being a nurse would be fun. That, and they told me that if I didn't pick a major, I couldn't take classes here anymore."

"I'm Troy Barnes, and I'm 20. I was the quarterback in high school on my football team. I had a scholarship but I dislocated my shoulder. There's a bunch of nurses in my family, so that's I want to do, too, I guess."

"I'm Abed. I'm 21. I like anything pop culture. I want to work with kids, because I like the way their minds work."

"I'm Britta Perry. I just turned 30. I want to make a difference in the world, and figured I was too old to keep going to protests and getting pepper sprayed. I think working with underprivileged people as a nurse would be a good way to help people."

"Hello! I'm Shirley. I have two sons and I love to bake. My husband and I just got separated, so I thought now was the best time to do what I always wanted, and that's to be a nurse."

Annie took a deep breath as the circle ended with her. "I'm Annie Edison. I actually went to school with Troy. I'm 20. I'm repeating nursing 1, so that's why I offered to lead the study group. I've wanted to be a nurse for as long as I can remember, I just hit a few bumps along the way."

"You went to my school?" Troy asked, really looking at her for the first time.

"Yeah, I sat behind you in algebra."

"Oh shit!" Troy said loudly. At that, Jeff finally looked up from his phone. "You're little Annie Adderall! Last I heard you were in rehab some where after running through that sliding glass door!"

Annie felt her face turning red as everyone but Jeff started to chuckle. "Yep! That's me! Little Annie Adderall. I was just trying to be nice and help all of you, but if you're going to laugh at what happened to me, _then I don't want anything to do with you_."

When she felt the tears threatening to spill over, she pushed herself away from the table, and ran toward the door.

"What the fuck is the matter with you guys?" she heard Jeff ask, right before the door closed behind her.


End file.
